Travellers wait on line to book and reschedule travel plans after flights were delayed or cancelled at O’Hare International Airport in Chicago. A fire at a nearby Federal Aviation Administration control facility in Aurora, Illinois caused delays and cancellations of flights into and out of Chicago’s two main airports as well as flights from other airports.
DPA/Reuters/Washington
Thousands of US travellers were stranded yesterday after a small fire at an air traffic control centre caused hundreds of flight cancellations at major Chicago airports.
Chicago’s O’Hare International Airport and Midway Airport cancelled more than 850 flights in and out of the city, causing a ripple of delays across the country, the airports said.
By 10.30am (1530 GMT) some flights began arriving and departing Chicago at a reduced rate, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) said.
The FAA said there had been a fire at a regional air traffic control centre in Aurora and that traffic into and out of Chicago had been stopped.
The Chicago Tribune newspaper reported that a man with a self-inflicted wound was found in the basement of the facility and was taken to a hospital.
Police said in the report that the fire had been deliberately set but that there were no indications of terrorism.
Aurora police were quoted as saying by broadcaster WGN that there was one other casualty found at the facility, suffering from smoke inhalation.
Tom Ahern of the US Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms told WGN that the fire was intentionally set with gasoline by the individual with the self-inflicted knife wounds to the wrists and arms.
The reason for the fire has yet to be determined, Ahern said.
“There’s cascading delays because nothing can take off bound for Chicago from anywhere,” said Doug Church, spokesman for the National Air Traffic Controllers Association, a union of air traffic controllers. “The impact is national and major.”
At O’Hare, passengers were scrambling to find alternative transportation or bracing for long delays for flights to resume.
“I’m shocked at how calm everyone is. With everything going on in the world, maybe we’re all managing our expectations. It’s a fire in Aurora, it’s not ISIS,” Cynthia Stemler of the Chicago suburb of Lake Bluff, who was heading to Newark, said, referring to militant Islamic State group at war in Syria and Iraq.
O’Hare is the main hub for United Airlines and a major hub for American Airlines. From January to August, more than 580,000 flights departed or landed at O’Hare, the city of Chicago said, citing FAA data.
“We anticipate a significant number of cancellations and delays throughout the day,” United said in a statement.
Southwest Airlines Co suspended all flights until noon at Midway and Milwaukee’s General Mitchell International Airport, the airline said in a statement. It was not clear what other airlines planned to do.
The FAA said employees were evacuated from its control centre in Aurora when the fire broke out, reportedly about 6am CDT (1100 GMT).
“This has resulted in a ground stop for flights in the area and heading to Chicago,” the FAA said in a statement.
Airspace management was transferred to adjacent air traffic facilities, it said. Crews responding to the fire found the man with knife wounds in the basement of the facility, who was then transported to a hospital, news reports said.
Representatives for the police department could not be immediately reached for comment.
On May 13, about 700 flights were canceled at O’Hare and Midway airports after a faulty motor in the heating and cooling system at a flight control centre in Elgin, Illinois, a Chicago suburb, caused smoke to circulate and forced staff to clear out of the building.
Flight operations at the Elgin centre were transferred to the Aurora control centre and limited arrivals and departures resumed more than three hours after the incident.
